While the Ukrainian government has moved to legalize Bitcoin (BTC) amid the ongoing attacks from the Russian military, some of the largest local banks have reportedly banned their clients from buying BTC using the national currency.
PrivatBank, the largest commercial bank in Ukraine, has temporarily restricted its customers from purchasing Bitcoin with the national currency, the hryvnia (UAH), industry publication Forklog reported on Thursday.
Citing a spokesperson from PrivatBank, the report notes that the latest PrivatBank’s restrictions fall in line with an order from the National Bank of Ukraine. The restrictions will reportedly apply during the current period of martial law in the country.
The statement came shortly after Binance’s Ukrainian division reported on PrivatBank’s cryptocurrency restrictions on Wednesday.
“We would like to inform you that PrivatBank will not support operations with UAH on all crypto exchanges with no exception starting from March, 2022,†Binance Ukraine announced in a post on Facebook.
Binance also advised its customers to use its peer-to-peer (P2P) exchange service, noting that other banks can make a similar decision at any time.
According to the bank’s official website, PrivatBank has taken multiple steps to keep financial stability under martial law, providing credit holidays and increasing withdrawal limits. PrivatBank did not respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment.
The first reports on PrivatBank’s crypto-related restrictions surfaced in late February, with some users stating that banks were blocking user accounts associated with P2P crypto exchanges like LocalBitcoins.
https://twitter.com/claberus/status/1497525321444339713?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Related: Ukraine finds unlikely ally in efforts to bar Russian access to crypto: The Central Bank of Russia
On Wednesday, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a law to establish a legal framework for the country to operate a regulated crypto market. The Ukrainian government was actively working to adopt regulations, with the Ukrainian parliament passing the legislation in its second reading in mid-February.
There is good reason to be afraid. Previous down markets have seen declines in excess…
United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) and FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) are two robust logistics companies. Both…
Canadian crypto mining firm Bitfarms sold roughly $62 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) in June,…
Invezz does not provide financial advice. Our aim is to simplify information about investing, enabling…
Noma, a Japanese film studio, has announced that it is producing three feature films that…
Bitcoin (BTC) saw continued strength on June 21 as Wall Street trading opened with a…